2. The Design Argument

Question 1

What is “telos” the Greek word for?

Answer 1

order/purpose

Question 2

What is William Paley best known for?

Answer 2

his analogy of the “watchmaker”

Question 3

Describe a brief biography of the theologian William Paley

Answer 3

• the most famous version of the design argument was created by William Haley in Natural Theology (1802)
• Paley was a liberal theologian, anti-slavery campaigner & teacher
• he argued that if complex manufactured objects have designers, natural ones must as well
• the only person who could have designed these natural objects is God
• God, therefore, must exist

Question 4

What is the “anthropic priniciple”?

Answer 4

the idea that the universe is set up to support human life

Question 5

List features that indicate the existence of an intelligent designer

Answer 5

• specificity/intracacies of objects/entities
• the domino effect of intelligence -> e.g. needing trees to live
• “neuroplasticity” -> the world keeps evolving
• natural land could not have been created by a human -> transcendence + omnipotence
• “aesthetic principle”
• order -> objects & scientific laws operate in a regular way
• suitability for human life -> the universe provides the right environment for human life
• purpose: objects within the universe appear to be working towards an end of purpose
• benefit -> the universe provides all that is necessary for life
• appearance -> the beauty of nature & the universe suggests that it is intended for something more than basic survival

Question 6

What is the “aesthetic principle”?

Answer 6

the beauty of nature provides sufficient evidence of a designer

Question 7

What is the significance of an inductive argument?

Answer 7

it relies on premises (an argument/form of reasoning) which leads to a logical necessary conclusion

Question 8

Cicero’s quote on the Design Argument

Answer 8

“What could be more clear or obvious when we look up to the sky and contemplate the heavens, than there is some divinity or intelligence.”

Question 9

What is the theistic argument in the context of the design argument?

Answer 9

it is an argument that seeks to prove the existence of the God of classical theism by suggesting that certain aspects of the universe are so perfectly adapted to fulfill their function that they display evidence of being deliberately designed

Question 10

What does the theistic argument suggest about the design of the universe?

Answer 10

it suggests that the design of the universe can only be explained with reference to an intelligent, personal designer

Question 11

Who is Richard S winburne & what is his view?

Answer 11

• contemporary theistic philosopher
• he observes that there is a vast, persuasive non-religious order & conformity of nature to formula, recorded in scientific laws

Question 12

What is the main point of the design argument in relation to science?

Answer 12

the design argument hypothesises that the complexity & order in the universe suggest the existence of a designer, going beyond what science can explain

Question 13

Describe the Teleological Argument of Aquinas?

Answer 13

• premise 1 -> there is beneficial order
• premise 2 -> order cannot happen by chance
• premise 3 -> inanimate objects work towards an end (telos)
• premise 4 -> objects must be directed
• conclusion -> this director is God

Question 14

Describe a brief biography of St. Thomas Aquinas

Answer 14

• lived 1225-1274
• widely regarded as the most significant of the medieval philosopher/Catholic theologians
• a supporter of the Design Argument
• “quiet” student -> his fellow pupils ostracised him by making a reference to him as a “dumb ox”

Question 15

Define contingent

Answer 15

subject to chance